Robin Fraser’s assessment of Josh Sargent’s recent performances and the assessments of Apple TV commentators and panelists have been vastly different recently. It was the Toronto FC coach who had the last laugh on Saturday night.
A lot of the talk on Apple before Toronto FC’s match against Inter Miami, which ended in a 2-1 road win for the Reds, was about Sargent and his lack of goals despite the high price tag to bring him to the club, a sentiment echoed by some fans as well. That’s an easy argument to make if you look at the stat sheet — no goals in his previous five matches — but for months Fraser has been defending his striker, adamant that he is happy with Sargent’s other contributions to the team.
Whether it was a lung-busting run to his own box to make a big defensive block against CF Montreal, his driving run to assist Markus Cimermancic’s goal against Charlotte midweek, or his routine pressing up the pitch, Sargent has found ways to impact results other than scoring.
On Saturday, Sargent got his goal, opening the scoring with a well-placed shot into the bottom corner of the net from the edge of the box, past diving Canadian goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair. As he cartwheeled toward the corner flag, Sargent not only silenced the stunned Miami fans, but also some of those doubters before the match.
“I thought Josh was tremendous,” Fraser said to reporters including Waking The Red after the match. “He’s such a good teammate. He does anything he can to help the team defensively, and you see him getting fitter and more in tune with his teammates offensively.
“You think about some of the runs he made the other night and some of the runs he made tonight with the ball. I just think he’s really settling into the group. He’s really settling into the league.”
If Toronto FC are going to make the playoffs this season, Sargent will need to continue to be effective. Was Saturday’s goal the one that opens the floodgates for the American striker?